Severe weather conditions frequently create conditions in which a supply of readily available fortification materials, such as sandbags, is desirable. Flood conditions, and the like, especially create a need for a large supply of sandbags.
Currently, and in the past, the primary method for filling sandbags is for two people to fill the bag: one person holds the bag open while the remaining person fills the bag with loose materials, such as sand. Typically, a garden-variety shovel is used to fill the bags. This type of shovel is designed more to turn earth than to fill open containers. Thus, during the process of filling bags, a significant amount of loose material frequently misses the bag opening and falls to the ground. This "lost" material is a huge waste of time and energy. Thus, there is a need for a device that will reduce the amount of material "lost" during the bag filling operation.
Furthermore, since the typically used shovel has a small pan, extra time and effort is needed to adequately fill a bag. Using the current process, the filling of sandbags can require up to ten or more shovel-loads of loose material. Thus, it is obvious that there is a need for a device that will accelerate the bag filling operation, thereby allowing more bags to be filled in an equivalent amount of time. Additionally, the extra work required to be performed in the filling operation thereby creates extra and unnecessary fatigue. Thus, there is also a need for a device that is adapted to efficiently fill open containers thereby reducing the amount of wasted work performed during the filling operation.
In the past there have been several attempts to address these and other problems. One broad category is simply a device that is designed to hold bags open. This category is exampled by U.S. Pat. No. 96,941 issued to McPhail, U.S. Pat. No. 1,558,368 issued to Jones, U.S. Pat. No. 1,796,288 issued to Hester, U.S. Pat. No. 1,882,931 issued to Rodriguez, U.S. Pat. No. 1,923,816 issued to Firl, U.S. Pat. No. 2,305,863 issued to Ginter, U.S. Pat. No. 2,455,729 issued to Byers, U.S. Pat. No. 4,664,348 issued to Corsaut, III et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,669,689 issued to Jones, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,881,706 issued to Sedlik. These devices all basically replace the individual currently used to hold open the bag. The amount of materials directed into the bag and the amount of effort required to fill the bag remain unchanged.
Another category of devices is what appears to be a combination "dust pan" and bag opener. This category is exampled by U.S. Pat. No. 5,308,027 to Fullilove and U.S. Pat. No. 4,052,764 to Groff. These patents disclose devices designed to hold open a bag and to further provide a ramp or scoop or "dust pan" type attachment that is adapted to help direct small objects or refuse into the bag. These devices teach their use with simple brooms or other common cleaning equipment. While these devices appear to be designed to be used by a single individual, they are held in one hand while the other hand uses the broom other equipment. These patents do not, however, address the need for quick and efficient filling of containers by a single individual.